From No Depression:

First U.S. Plant/Krauss tour dates revealed

They’re going to be gone, gone, gone, for a good while it appears. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss are taking their already decorated Raising Sand collaboration on the road beginning April 20 with a handful of dates in the mid-South.

Producer T Bone Burnett is set to lead their band, which is to include guitarist Buddy Miller. The balance of the band has not been announced. Sets will include material from their sole album together, and from their respective careers. CMT is airing a preview of sorts on February 11as part of their “Crossroads” series.

Meanwhile, tickets go on sale January 25 for the four U.S. dates below. It is followed by an 11-date tour of Europe (no specifics yet), with further U.S. dates to be announced for June and July.

The tour begins here:

April 20 (Sunday) Louisville, KY (Palace Theatre)
April 22 (Tuesday) Knoxville, TN (Knoxville Civic Coliseum)
April 23 (Wednesday) Chattanooga, TN (Memorial Auditorium)
April 26 (Saturday) Birmingham, AL (BJCC Arena)

Ticket prices have not been announced.

For more information, keep an eye on the Robert Plant/Alison Kraus Raising Sand site.

The New Band Showcase has been a staple in Cornerstone Festival’s diverse existence for years. One look at just some of the past winners and you’ll understand why. P. O. D., Ester Drang, Sixpence None the Richer, Eisley, and Over the Rhine have all been a part of what has become a wellspring of up and coming talent and a place to find the most groundbreaking new bands.

Bands! This year when you send in your submission you will upload mp3s, a photo, and a bio to our website. You will have your own unique page that will stay online from the time you submit until the end of the summer. The earlier you submit, the more promotion you get out of our site.

There will be 16 winners overall. Our web audience will vote, and the 10 bands with the most votes will play on the New Band Showcase Stage, with the band receiving the most votes overall playing on Main Stage. Tell your fans, friends, and family to vote! Our panel of industry insiders will select the remaining 6 bands to play the New Band Showcase Stage.

The winners will also have their submissions reviewed by Tooth & Nail Records!

Only the winners will be contacted. Submissions will be accepted starting 10 a.m. CST on Friday, January 18 , and voting will begin March 18 and end May 18.

Kingdom Bound Ministries just announced their lineup. It takes place August 3-6, 2008, at Darien Lake Theme Park Resort in Darien Center, New York, halfway between Buffalo and Rochester.

Kingdom Bound, one of North America’s largest and longest running events of its kind, typically attracts about 60,000 people from all over the United States and Canada for four days of faith, fun, and fellowship through concerts and seminars.

Confirmed artists for Kingdom Bound 2008 include:

EVENING HEADLINERS

SUNDAY (8/3/08): Lincoln Brewster, (praise & worship, this night is very much like a giant outdoor church service)

MONDAY (8/4/08): multi-platinum, three time Grammy-winning band Third Day

TUESDAY (8/5/08): multi-platinum, Latin Grammy-nominated pop singer/actress Jaci Velasquez performs with her band, then with her husband Nic Gonzales, of Salvador, and then Nic’s band, Salvador, closes out the night.

WEDNESDAY (8/6/08): the Newsboys, a Kingdom Bound mainstay originally from Australia (groovin’ pop-rock, get on your feet and dance, as this energetic band, with its rotating-in-the-air drum set and amazing light show, brings the party wherever it goes)

DURING THE DAYS

Worship artists Paul Baloche, Leeland, Vicky Beeching, Jason Upton , Robin Mark and Kathryn Scott, Matt Maher , Ricardo , Rick Cua, and Lenny LeBlanc

Rockers Delirious , Skillet, Seventh Day Slumber, Fireflight, Big Daddy Weave, DecembeRadio, Grey Holiday

Female rockers Ilia, Joy Whitlock, and Stephanie Smith

Canadian rock bands Thousand Foot Krutch and Hawk Nelson, as well as Manic Drive and Turn Off The Stars (both from Toronto)

More variety pop-country band 33 Miles (featuring former “True Vibe” boy bander Jason Barton); hip-hop act Manafest (from Toronto); reggae- soul band NewWorldSon (from Niagara Falls, Ontario); big band/swing act Denver and the Mile High Orchestra (recently finished in the top 3 of Fox- TV’s “The Next Great American Band” show); and Western New York bands The Dig Project (from Rochester) and Relevant Worship (from Buffalo)

Confirmed speakers for Kingdom Bound 2008 include:

1) Dr. Kevin Leman (internationally-known author, psychologist, and media personality known for “The Birth Order Book”)

2) Reggie Dabbs (born to an unwed mother and raised by foster parents who eventually adopted him, he encourages young people to make good choices and be thankful for their families)

3) Bob Lenz (a teddy bear of a man who used to be made fun of and bullied, he speaks to young people letting them know they have value)

4) David Nasser (fled Iran as a young boy, with his family, during a 1979 revolution)

5) Wes Aarum, Jr. (an energetic college ministry leader from The Chapel at CrossPoint in suburban Buffalo)

6) Joe Rojas (lead singer of rock band Seventh Day Slumber talks about his past drug problems and how God helped him overcome them)

7) Justin Lookadoo (a 6′7″ motivational speaker who talks to high schoolers about drugs, alcohol, dating and relationships)

Kingdom Bound starts on Sunday, August 3, 2008, and continues through Wednesday, August 6, 2008, culminating in a concert by longtime festival favorite, the Newsboys.

Lead singer Leigh Nash announced on her myspace page recently that after having coffee with guitarist Matt Slocum they both were yearning to play together again. They are currently in the studio working on an EP and will go back on the road in April. One date has been announced so far…Cornerstone Festival in Bushnell, IL, on July 2nd. Leigh writes, “We realized we were on the same page and decided to make Sixpence None the Richer records for the next 2,000 to 3,000 years!!!!” Here’s hoping they go add back some of these riffs they had back on This Beautiful Mess!

The Kansas City Film Critics Circle, the second oldest film critics voting group in the United States, met Sunday, January 6, to chose their 2007 Film Critic Circle Awards. Following are the winners:

Film
There Will Be Blood

Robert Altman Award for Director
(tie) Paul Thomas Anderson for There Will Be Blood
and
Julian Schnabel for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Actor
Daniel Day-Lewis for There Will Be Blood

Supporting Actor
Javier Bardem for No Country for Old Men

Actress
Marion Cotilliard for La Vie En Rose

Supporting Actress
Tilda Swinton for Michael Clayton

Original Screenplay
Juno by Diablo Cody

Adapted Screenplay
No Country for Old Men by Joel and Ethan Coen

Animated
Ratatouille

Foreign Language
The Diving Bell and The Butterfly

Documentary
In The Shadow Of The Moon

Vince Koehler Award for Best Horror Film
Sweeney Todd

Submitted by Marie Asner

Press Release - Two Thousand and Eight will be Great!
The Phantom Tollbooth January 2008 Issue
www.tollbooth.org

Fast away the old year pass-ed. Fa la la la, la la la la. Hit the brakes and not the gas-ed. Fa la la la, la la la la. Yep. We’ve all moved up a number on the calendar, but the mission is the same. Slow down. Look around. Think. Be prepared for change.

Our features kick off with some Christmas memories (already so far away in the rear view mirror!) compiled by our most prolific interviewer, Joe Montague; an essay on the stories of F.W. Boreham; an interview with Darren Rahm; and a Single Serving of U2 and Larry Norman. Intrepid movie reviewer Marie Asner lists her best and worst films of the year and Jamie Rake has a new batch of Thoughts, The Rock Doc answers another personal question with a musical, faith-based solution, and Chris Barlow surveys ALL the upcoming releases in The Crossing.

Here are some book reviews for your winter-reading:
Polishing God’s Monuments–Pillars of Hope for Punishing Times - Jim Andrews
Mr. Inside - The Lost & Found International Series - L. Frank James
Your Chariot Awaits - Lorena McCourtney
He Loves Me, He Loves Me NOT: A Memoir of Finding Faith, Hope, and Happily Ever After - Trish Ryan

Concert reviews include Mannheim Steamroller’s annual Christmas show and a musical, The Emperor’s New Threads

First Run Movie reviews include:

All In the Name of God
Atonement
The Golden Compass
I’m Not There
Juno
The Kite Runner
Margot at the Wedding
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
No Country for Old Men
The Savages
Starting Out In the Evening
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

www.tollboothnews.com covers all the important music news, subscribing to our podcast feed will reward you with on-the-fly interviews all year long, and our handy search engine makes sifting through our 7,000 pages of content a snap!

Our writer’s musical Picks of the Month are:

Aradhna - Amrit Vani
Blind Boys of Alabama - Go Tell it on the Mountain

It was a tough call–check out the complete list of new music reviews:
After the Tragedy - The Voyage of Reason
Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe - An Evening of Yes Music Plus
The Annie Moses Band - Christmas Bright & Beautiful
The Annie Moses Band - Through the Looking Glass
Aradhna - Amrit Vani
Arrica Rose - Last Night on Earth
Atom Tha Immortal - Sword of 77 Faces
B3 Kings and the Bruno Hubert Trio - A Cellar Live Christmas
Barry D - Born to Play
Berry - Recovery (EP)
Blake Bollinger Band - No Holiday
Blind Boys of Alabama - Go Tell it on the Mountain
Samuel Bowen - Speak to Me
Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra - Carol of the Bells
Carman - Instrument of Praise
Col. Bruce Hampton and the Quark Alliance - Thanks To Chank
Distal - Tomorrow May (EP)
Dr. B.L.T. featuring Tommy Isbell and Other Artists - Certified Incense, Gold & Myrrh
A Dream Too Late - Intermission to the Moon
The Eagles - Long Road Out of Eden
Fairgreen - When You Come Back Home
Fight Before Surrender - s/t
He Is Legend - Suck Out the Poison
Ilia - Ilia (EP)
Jewly Hight - Darlin’ Understand
Griffin House - Flying Upside Down
Elliot Jack - Stay Away From Lonely Places
Boney James - Christmas Presen
Bobby Jones - The Ambassador
Jeremy Keen - False Starts
Kennebec - Rise
LA Symphony - Unleashed
Last American Buffalo - Marquis for the Debutante
Mo Leverett - Of Orphans and Kings
MercyMe - All That Is Within Me
MPK - MPK Christmas / MPK Christian Celtic Band
Myriad - Prelude to Arrows
Shane Newville - Formless
Panos Kappos - Scripture Of Today (EP)
Plumb–In My Arms maxi-single
Quick and the Dead - Going Home
RelientK - Let It Snow Baby…Let It Reindeer
The Resonars - Nonetheless Blue
Ruetschle - Exotic Destination
Scelerata - Darkness and Light
The Scurvies - Nightprowler
7 Thunders - Ride the Music
Johanna Sillanpaa - One Wish
Slipstream - Waiting for the Sound
Michael W. Smith - It’s a Wonderful Christmas
Sonset Down - You Lose
Sovereign Grace Music - Savior:Celebrating the Mystery of God
Frank Lee Sprague - Merry Christmas, Traditional Carols arranged as Traditional Rock Songs
Bruce Springsteen - Magic
Stigmata - self-titled (EP)
Bill Staines - Old Dogs
Ringo Starr – Photograph: Very Best of
Arkin Terrel - One Step Closer
Ben Thomas - The Bewildering Light: Faces At the Manager
Devin Townsend - Ziltoid the Omniscient
Various - Disney Channel Holiday
Various - Distraught/Rockcore Compilation
Various - Rubber Folk
Various - Songs 4 Ever
Various - Songs for Luca 2
The Vaseline Rats - Epic
Voice of the Mysterons - They Have Pulled Down Deep Heaven On Their Heads -Or- Come Hell or High Voltage: An Electromagnetic Rapture-rock Shock-apocalypse In Dramatic Dialogue With Damned Abaddon’s Lost Lads And Lasses
Rigo Waltz - There’s a Man
Neil Young - Chrome Dreams ll
Renee Zawawi - Legends

Shari Lloyd
Linda J. T. LaFianza
Co-publishers
The Phantom Tollbooth
Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective
www.tollbooth.org
www.tollboothnews.com
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